Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Chris Cody Coalition: Oasis

Chris Cody Coalition: Oasis

By C. Michael Bailey
March 1, 1999
View read count

Multicultural. Oasis is a jazz voyage through Traditional Western, Eastern, Middle Eastern, and African motifs and rhythms played by Australians, Chileans, Europeans. The leader, Australian-born Chris Cody, has assembled eight original originals and a single standard (a boozy Monk's Mood) for his first outing on Naxos Jazz. It is ultimately an interesting and entertaining recording.

The Middle East. "El Bahdja", "Oasis", and "After the Storm" all contain hypnotic Middle Eastern figures over which Cody and his merry band paint their unique portrait of these influences strained through the filter of jazz. Outstanding are Jon Pease's guitar solo on "El Bahdja" and James Greening's trombone on the title cut. But is not a complete foreign exercise. "Flooze Blooze" is a great straight-ahead jazz piece with fine performances by all and the disc's standard is a weaving "Monk's Mood", directed again by Greening's trombone.

"Green's Piece" is a Cody composition inspired by a classical musician friend that presents Cody with the best vehicle displaying is well-informed and tasteful playing. The disc closes with another Jon Pease ride over an African melody that is quite pleasant and cheerful. The band's percussionist, Fabian Hevia, is also well represented here. The rhythm section of Swanton and Bartram is well grounded and precise while at the same time performing with a controlled abandon.

Pigeon Hole. This music moves well beyond the bounds of traditional (bop-oriented) jazz and effectively explores influences not typically thought of when considering jazz as a musical category. It is this spirit that has always guided Naxos, Jazz or Classical. There are always surprises to be expected and this disc is a very welcome one.

Track Listing

El Bahdja, Oasis, After the Storm, Flooze Blooze, Monk's Mood, Green's Peace, Gare De L'Est, Shadows Across the Land, African Dance.

Personnel

Chris Cody Coalition

Chris Cody: Piano; James greening: Trombone, Pocket Trumpet, Jon Pease: Guitar; Lloyd Swanton: Bass; John Bartram: Drums; Fabian Hevia: Percussion.

Album information

Title: Oasis | Year Released: 1999

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Can You Judge an Album By Its Label?
< Previous

Toots Sweet
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.